The invention relates to a device for massaging the gums and cleaning the teeth of an infant, said device comprising a handle and a plate-shaped bite-on part curved in such a way that it essentially corresponds to the curvature of the jaw. Said bite-on part comprises massage and cleaning projections on at least either the upper or the lower surface and consists of a material that is softer than that of the handle. The invention also relates to a method for producing such device.
Such device is already known from U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,443 A. This device is provided with a U-shaped brush head having cavities on both the upper and the lower surface containing a number of bristles. The brush head may be attached to a somewhat A-shaped handle. For attachment, the two freely protruding legs of the “A” are inserted via end flanges into slits on the outer edge of the U-shaped brush head. Such device may be disassembled easily for transport, but an infant playing with it must not be left unattended because the handle, being detachably connected to the brush head, may unintentionally become loose or even detached rather easily, so there is a risk that an infant may swallow the brush head. This problem is even aggravated by the fact that the handle is relatively small, compared to the brush head, and the connection sites (slits) are located in close proximity to each other. In addition, the toothbrush is rather unwieldy due to the small and relatively impractical shape of the handle, particularly with respect to moving the toothbrush back and forth during use. Another disadvantage of this toothbrush is that it is not possible to effectively massage the gums to soothe a teething infant, because the handle and the brush head are only loosely connected.
In addition, a number of devices of the teether type are known, e.g. from GB 2288 126 A, U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,344 A, US 2003/0181948 A1, or US 2005/0004603 A1. They are all supposed to soothe an infant's gums and/or mitigate irritations during an infant's teething. However, these known teethers have the disadvantage that they are entirely made of either relatively hard or relatively soft material. Therefore, they either do not allow cleaning of the teeth because they are too hard, or they do not allow effective gum massage because the handle is too elastic. In addition, these teethers are generally shaped as rings, so that they only reach the front-most part of an infant's gums. The hind part of the jaw, i.e. the molar area, is not affected by the “treatment”. Therefore, it is impossible to soothe or mitigate gum irritations in this area.
For example, WO 2003/065969 A1 discloses a device to support teething, which may also be used as a pacifier. The device is comprised of a U-shaped mouth-engageable portion, a shield and a handle, said handle and said mouth-engageable portion being formed as a unitary piece and thus consisting of the same material.
DE 70 949 C discloses a device to facilitate teething having a U-shaped mouth-engageable portion on which a calcium containing solution is applied or which is impregnated with said liquid. This is supposed to prevent or at least mitigate illnesses. The U-shaped mouth-engageable portion is connected to a safety shield and a handle.
GB 510 754 A discloses a teething ring having a portion to be bitten on and a portion for holding the ring. The bitten-on portion is studded with projections. This ring also consists of one single material.
CA 1 329 868 C discloses a combination of a toothbrush and a teething ring, with bristles provided on the ring. This document does not disclose any bite-on part made of softer material.
EP 1 611 818 A1 discloses a tooth cleaning device for children, wherein a brush and a rattle being attached to a ring. Grip portions are located between the opposing portions of brush and rattle, said grip portions being equipped with protrusions. Again, no relatively soft bite-on portion is provided.
It is the object of the invention to provide a device as described above, which may be used by infants even if they are unattended, and which allows effective massage of the gums and cleaning of the teeth of an infant. In addition, the device should be easy and cheap to produce.
According to the invention, this problem is solved by connecting the handle and the bite-on part in a non-detachable manner. This type of connection allows stable, strain-resistant and, above all, permanent connection of the hard handle and the soft bite-on part, so that the handle can not get detached from the bite-on part unintentionally even under frequent use of the device, and therefore the device may be used by infants even if they are unattended. In addition, the relatively hard handle allows efficient transmission of the user's power to the relatively soft bite-on part equipped with projections for massage and cleaning. This allows both cleaning the young teeth and massaging the gums of a teething infant.
Considering an easy construction for producing a non-detachable connection of handle and bite-on part, it is advantageous to provide the handle with two freely protruding ends for connection to the bite-on part.
For effective cleaning of the teeth and massaging of the gums of an infant, the bite-on part advantageously comprises a circumferential wall extending upwards and downwards from the plate-shaped basic body, the inside of said wall being at least partially equipped with massage and cleaning projections, particularly bristle-like projections. The particular shape and the particularly bristle-like projections have the advantage of allowing extensive cleaning and massaging of the gums and teeth on all sides. This effect is also provided by the infant's more or less intensive biting movements on the bite-on part, thus naturally shifting the bite-on part back and forth. The projections may vary in length and thickness, with the basic body e.g. having shorter projections than the wall extending upwards and downwards. Instead of bristles or knobs, lamella-like massage and cleaning projections may also be provided, of course.
The wall may have the same height and thickness all around the basic body. Alternatively, the wall may have sections of different heights.
It is advantageous for the bite-on part to be formed such that it essentially corresponds to the entire curvature of an infant's jaws. Thus, the entire jaw and gums of an infant may be reached, and even the rear part may be cleaned and massaged at the same time as the front part. This is of particular advantage because, naturally, not all teeth form at the same time. During the very period when the incisors have already erupted from the gums, the canines are at the point of erupting, and the molars have not yet formed at all, the already existing teeth may be cleaned, while simultaneously the irritable lateral and rear parts of the gums may be sensitively massaged by the specially shaped bite-on part. This “treatment” may further be optimized by varying the lengths and thicknesses of the projections on the basic body and on the insides of the circumferential wall around the basic body. In particular, essentially the entire jaws and gums may be massaged or cleaned if the thickness of the wall of the plate-shaped basic body of the bite-on part increases from the center of its curvature towards its ends. Alternatively, it is also possible to provide a wall of the plate-shaped basic body of constant thickness, with the height of the massage and cleaning projections increasing from the center of the curvature of the bite-on part towards its ends. Advantageously, this will make production easier than preparing a basic body with increasing wall thickness. These advantageous embodiments of the plate-shaped basic body may also be provided for detachable connections between handle and bite-on part.
For a simple construction of a non-detachable connection that is easy to produce, it is advantageous to form connecting elements on the bite-on part for connection to the handle, said connecting elements being attached to the handle ends in a non-detachable manner.
It is also advantageous to form the connecting elements on the outer edge of the respective end sections of the bite-on part, extending essentially radially from the center of the curvature of the U-shaped bite-on part. This arrangement of connecting elements on the bite-on part is advantageous because the device as a whole is thus formed stably, and the entire bite-on part may be inserted into the oral cavity without the handle hindering it.
A reliable, non-detachable connection between the bite-on part and the handle is provided by the bite-on part being positively connected to the handle. It may be preferable for each connecting element of the bite-on part to be received positively in an orifice in the handle, particularly in the freely protruding handle ends. A positive connection may concretely be realized in a variety of ways. A positive connection of simple construction is obtained by providing at least one orifice in the handle receiving at least one elevation of the connecting element. The concrete embodiments of such orifices and elevations may be varied as desired.
In addition or alternatively, through borings may be provided in the connecting elements for positive connection of the handle and the bite-on part, with pins on the handle being passed through. Said pins may e.g. be provided on each inside of the handle half ends when the handle is divided into two halves along a central plane that is horizontal when the handle is viewed from the top. For easy alignment of the two handle halves with respect to each other, it is advantageous to provide insert sleeves and corresponding insert pins on the insides of the handle halves for connecting the two halves. The handle halves may be welded, particularly by means of ultrasonic welding, or adhered or snapped together for easy connection of the handle halves in a non-detachable manner.
As an alternative to a positive connection between handle and bite-on part, the handle and the bite-on part may be integrally formed by means of a two component injection molding process to connect the relatively hard handle and the relatively soft bite-on part in a non-detachable manner. This embodiment also ensures easy production and firm connection of the individual components of the device.
According to another characteristic feature, it is advantageous for the handle to essentially have the form of a yoke. E.g. a simple, common U-shape or bow-shape may be chosen, preferably having two or three indentations on the outside and outward bulges on the inside. The latter is particularly well suited for infants, because infants often put something into their mouths while holding it in both hands. In addition, such form looks attractive.
With regard to the use of the device, it is advantageous for the bite-on part to be arranged concavely with respect to the handle. As the bite-on part is thus arranged on the handle such that the infant can easily put it in its mouth, it is particularly easy and comfortable for the infant to bite on it.
As to the material, it is advantageous for the handle to be made of polypropylene, polycarbonate or similar materials. E.g. softened polypropylene may be used as marketed under the trade name Adflex. For efficient massage and cleaning of gums and teeth, the handle preferably has a Shore hardness D of about 20 to about 50, preferably about 30 to about 40.
On the other hand, it is advantageous for the bite-on part to be made of silicone, thermoplastic elastomers or similar materials. Advantageously, the bite-on part has a Shore hardness A of about 30 to about 70, preferably about 45 to about 60.
When the handle is to be integrally connected to the bite-on part, the problem mentioned above with respect to the method of production of the device is solved by preparing the device as an integral piece by means of a two or three component injection molding process. If a three component injection molding process is used, e.g. some individual massage projections may be made harder than the others. Also, the handle may have sections made of softer material than the rest of the handle, resulting in different sensations when touching or biting on the different sections.
Alternatively, if the handle and the bite-on part are to be positively connected and the handle is to be provided in the form of two handle halves to be put together, the device may be produced easily by positively connecting the connecting elements of the bite-on part to the corresponding handle half ends prior to connecting the two handle halves, and then hot welding the handle halves using ultrasonic welding to connect them in a non-detachable manner.